


.01 This is Cheesy

by LaPilar



Series: Marvel Imagines/One-Shots [1]
Category: The Avengers (Marvel) - All Media Types
Genre: A/b/o if you squint, Alpha!Bucky Barnes, Chicago, Cold, F/M, Fluff without Plot, Protective Bucky Barnes, Snow, Wintertime, implied smut at the end, loving bucky barnes, may not make sense but it's cute asf, omega!reader, proposal, pure fluff, ring, soulmate
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-12-12
Updated: 2017-12-12
Packaged: 2019-02-13 18:46:36
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,682
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12990264
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/LaPilar/pseuds/LaPilar
Summary: You get Bucky to take you into Chicago for the day right during the holidays. He pops the question to your surprise.





	.01 This is Cheesy

"Can you get me a peppermint mocha?" I asked, biting my lip as I inhaled the scent of holiday coffee. It was heavenly.  
Bucky rubbed my back and placed a kiss on top of my knit hat. "Sure thing, doll. Grab us a table, I'll be back soon."  
I nodded and took a seat at a high table near the window that would allow us to watch the snow blanket the city. Chicago was typically a dirty place, full of smog and rough people and shouting, but right now, in the precious time before they managed to get the snow plowed and before people dared dirty it with their car tires, the place was enchanting. I sat contentedly, watching the snow pile up outside. Bucky was visiting for winter break, and I had convinced him to take us into the city.  
A few minutes later, Bucky sat down across from me, sliding the steaming mug to me and wrapping his big hands around his own. The drinks couldn't differ more; mine was a light caramel color and covered in whipped cream, whereas he was just drinking his typical black coffee.  
"Warmed up yet?" he asked, following my gaze to the winter white outside.  
"Getting there," I answered, returning my gaze to his dark brown eyes.   
He nodded, satisfied with my answer, before taking a sip of his coffee. "Can I try yours?" he asked.  
I raised an eyebrow but nodded, pushing the sugary drink across the table to him. He hesitantly lifted it to his lips, taking a deep sip once he realized it wasn't going to burn him. He immediately frowned and pushed the drink back over to me, swallowing with a disgusted look on his face and yanking his own coffee up to his lips to take a hearty gulp. "Ugh that's awful. It's pure sugar. How do you drink that?" he asked incredulously.  
I giggled, taking a sip of the drink. The mocha was perfect, sweet yet refreshingly minty. "It tastes fantastic; what're you talking about?"  
He smiled and shook his head. "You're such an infuriatingly misleading mix of omega traits and alpha traits, it blows my mind sometimes."  
I gave him a teasing smile. "What do you mean?"  
"Well, every omega I've ever met has liked sweet things, but few if any would ever walk around Chicago in the winter. I mean, it's blisteringly cold outside, and that's coming from me."  
I shrugged. "It's so pretty I can't help myself. Plus, you get numb after awhile anyway, so it's not that bad."  
He gave me a disapproving look. "If you're getting numb, we're going to go home."  
I smiled and shook my head. "No, I'm fine. Besides, we haven't even made it to the Christkindl market yet. That was the whole point of this trip."  
"Okay. Tell me if you're ever too cold though, we'll find somewhere to take a break inside."  
"Aye aye captain," I joked.  
We sipped the rest of our coffee in silence, Bucky reading the latest Chicago Tribune as I watched the snow swirl outside. Despite it being only a week from Christmas, the chill seemed to be keeping most people inside; the streets were practically empty.   
"Ready to go?" I asked as he took the last sip of his coffee. My own was long gone, but he'd looked so content to sit and read the paper that I hadn't wanted to disturb him.  
"Yep."   
I hopped down from my seat and wrapped myself back up in my parka, hat, scarf, and mittens as Bucky mirrored my actions. Once we were sufficiently covered, I looked at both of us from head to toe and had to chuckle. "I look like a chunky old woman in this coat, and you just look like a casual Ralph Lauren model."  
He smiled and leaned to down to press a firm kiss to my lips. "You're a very cute chunky old woman, and you're my old woman, that's what matters."  
I blushed and shoved him uselessly, taking his hand in mine as I led us outside. A shiver ran through me as soon as the cold air blasted us in the face. "The market's only a block north," I reminded Bucky before tugging on his hand to lead the way. He followed obediently, letting me set the pace, which was probably slow for him. I loved that he'd become comfortable enough in our relationship that he let me take charge sometimes, that he trusted me enough to let me dominate some aspects of his life.   
I heard the music before I saw the market, which was nestled in a square between several skyscrapers. Cheery German music blasted through speakers; I didn't speak any German but it was apparent from the tune that they were Christmas carols. The next thing to come into sight was the main gate, shutting the market in away from the common street traffic. "C'mon!" I said happily, tugging on Bucky's hand to walk a bit faster as we approached the entrance. I could now hear and see the crowd inside, which was still packed despite the weather. Hundreds of people milled around, speaking to vendors, shouting to their loved ones over the buzz, or just sipping on steaming drinks.  
Bucky chuckled and heeded my command, letting me pull him inside the gates.  
I stood still for a moment, just absorbing my surroundings. The market was designed after a 16th-century German market, so it painted a stark contrast to the concrete and steel buildings surrounding it. There was a huge Christmas tree in the middle of the square, all lit up and strung to the buildings with glittering lights. I turned to Bucky, who was already looking at me with a faint smile on his face.  
"Isn't it gorgeous?" I asked excitedly, unable to hide my inner child.  
"It really is," he agreed. "What first? Some shopping, then beer and spiced wine?"  
I rolled my eyes. "I’m not 21."  
"Yeah, but I’m almost 92, so I think I count for both of us. Now c'mon, what first?"  
"Let's just browse the vendors," I suggested.  
"Sounds good." He squeezed my hand and said, "Don't lose me, okay?"  
I could immediately sense the worry in him. It was predictable in a crowd and city this large. "Of course," I reassured him.  
He took charge this time, making his way through the crowds until were in front of the first booth. They were selling hand-blown glass ornaments, and there was a man making them right there as a display. I leaned over to Bucky and whispered, "I bet that's hard to do with frozen fingers from the cold."  
"He's working with a blowtorch, and wearing some seriously thick gloves," Bucky pointed out.  
"True, but I still feel bad for him," I said.  
"Want me to buy an ornament from him to make him feel better?" he asked.  
I considered this. They were pretty, but there wasn't one that popped out at me, and I didn't want to have to lug 40 ornaments around town later. "No. Let's see what the other booths have."  
The next few booths were the same, except one had hot spiced wine and beer. "C'mon, I want a beer," Bucky said, and I rolled my eyes but followed him up to the vendor. He ordered his beer, then turned to me. "Sweetie, you want some hot wine?"  
"Yes please," I answered, and flashed the vendor a smile. He gave me a suspicious look, but handed over the drinks after Bucky paid.  
"You're such a criminal, buying alcohol for minors," I joked as we stepped away and went on to the next booth.  
"Don't tell me that wine isn't warming your soul."  
"You're right, my soul is warmed," I joked. The wine really was good, and I could feel it warming up my insides as it made its way through me.  
Two vendors later, we ran into an Irish booth. "Ooh!" I exclaimed, picking up a trinity knot necklace. "This is so pretty."  
He took it between two long fingers and examined it. "Simple and understated. I like it. I'm buying it for you."  
I immediately reached for it back, but he was too fast, and held it above his head, giving me a half-smile that said he was entertained. I pouted. "Bucky, you buy me too much already."  
"Think of it as an early Christmas present," he said, handing the necklace over to the vendor to check out. The woman frowned at our antics, but didn't say anything as Bucky handed over his credit card.  
"You know, I still don't know what to get you for Christmas," I said. "And you've been telling me to think of things as early Christmas presents for the past three weeks."  
"Is it a crime to spoil your girl? Besides, I already told you what you could get me for Christmas. A blowjob."  
I rolled my eyes, taking the necklace from his outstretched hand. "I already give you those. It's supposed to be something you don't get all the time."  
We took a few steps back from the vendor after getting Bucky's card back, and he took the necklace back, flipping me around so he could latch it onto me. I shuddered as the cold metal touched my breastbone.  
"You know what I want for Christmas," he said in a low voice, completely serious now.  
I sighed and turned back around, tugging my hair around front self-consciously. I did know what he wanted, of course. He’d been asking me to let him bond us for months now. His eyes were begging me to give in.  
"And you know I want to be married before I do that. It doesn't make a huge difference right now anyway. You're with me almost constantly, and you know I'd never cheat on you."  
"That's not what it's about. It's about people knowing you're mine."  
My smile fell despite the new jewelry around my neck. When I didn't answer instantly, Bucky spoke up again, the sad look on his face fading. "You know what, let's forget I brought it up. You can think about it later, and we've already talked each others' ears off about it."  
I chuckled half-heartedly. "More like argued each others' ears off."  
He nodded and his smile grew, but it still didn't reach his eyes. "Let's enjoy Chicago now, shall we?"  
"Please," I said before looping my arm through his and tugging him onto the next booth.   
He bought a few things here and there, some for me and some for his teammates. I didn't see anything that I thought he'd like, so I kept my wallet to myself. It wasn't long before we reached the center of the square, where an enormous Christmas tree was lit up and twinkling with ornaments and tinsel. I stopped, forcing Bucky to stand by my side as I looked up almost vertically at it. "I love Christmas lights," I said, an unstoppable shiver running through me. There was no longer any denying that I was cold.   
"You want to head back?" Bucky asked, rubbing a comforting hand up and down my back.   
"We can stay a little longer," I reassured him, still captivated by the lights. I felt Bucky's hand drop from my back, probably to redistribute his load of gift bags.  
I then heard small gasps from behind me. I frowned, but before I got a chance to see what was going on, Bucky said, "Hey y/n, I gotta question for you."  
That made me whip around. He was on one knee in front of me, and although I hated to be that girl, my hands immediately flew to cover my mouth and the huge smile that was forming.  
He had a small blue velvet jewelry box in one hand, and he took my hands with his free one. I felt that jolt of recognition that ran through me every time we touched, like coming home.   
He had a shit-eating grin on his face, and I realized people had cleared out an area around us and were watching, smiling and taking pictures, but I couldn't care less. He popped the box open to reveal an antique-looking ring with a seriously big rock. "I know this is kinda cheesy and you hate cheese, but will you make me the happiest man alive and marry me?"  
"Yes, yes a million times over." It's like the words couldn't get out of my mouth fast enough, and the tears were coming as if they were a fact of life.   
He launched himself up and into my waiting arms, pressing his lips onto mine like he couldn't get enough. I kissed him back hard, it was the most convinced kissing I had ever done. I had to push him off of me, and he still kept me wrapped firmly in his arms as the crowd around us came back into my line of sight. They were hollering and applauding, and I couldn't help but giggle as I wiped the tears out of my eyes.   
It took him some time to peel me off of him, and it was only so he could take my left hand in his and slide the ring on. It fit perfectly, to my surprise. "How'd you know my size?" I asked, unable to take my eyes off the ring now that it was a part of me.   
"I had some help from your sister," he admitted.   
I raised my eyebrows in surprise. "She knows?"  
"Your whole family kinda knows. I had to ask your dad's permission. They just didn't know when I'd pop the question. I've been carrying the ring around in my pocket ever since he said yes, but you just looked so perfect there, with the tree behind you, and I couldn't resist."  
I kissed him again, shorter this time and almost in gratitude. "It was perfect," I said, resting my forehead against his for a brief moment. "I just wish someone had taken pictures."  
"Don't worry about that," he said, taking my hand in his and pulling me over to one of the strangers. The crowd was dissipating now, but this girl gave us a smile and held out Bucky's phone.   
"I think I got some good ones," she said.   
Bucky looked at me and shrugged. "She looked like she'd be good at taking pictures." He turned back to the girl. "Thank you so much."  
"No problem. That was so sweet; I can only hope I meet a guy one day who loves me that much," she said, her eyes watery as well.   
"You're so beautiful and nice, I don't see how you couldn't," Bucky said, patting her on the shoulder. After exchanging goodbyes, he led me towards the exit. "Beautiful and nice?" I asked, raising a questioning eyebrow.  
"I literally just asked you to spend the rest of your life with me, doll. Trust me, I wasn't flirting with her."  
I giggled, patting him on the chest. "I know, I know. But how about tonight, I prove it to you anyway. That you're mine. And I'm yours."  
Luckily, he caught my drift. I wasn't about to say that out loud. He stopped walking and turned to me, an unsure expression on his face. I bit my lip and smiled hesitantly. "You're sure?" he asked.  
"Yep. You just proved to me that you're serious about me. I don't think you're going to let me go. And truth be told, I was thinking about letting you do it anyway."  
His face turned into a ray of sunshine, and he pulled me in to press a quick kiss to my forehead before beginning to walk again. "You sure that's going to be okay in your parents' house? Should we get a hotel room?"  
"They're all gone until tomorrow at my grandma's house, remember? We have the place to ourselves."  
"Good," he said, but it came out as more of a growl before he dipped lower to whisper in my ear, "Because you're going to be screaming all night long."


End file.
